Folding altar



April 10, 1951 i F. 'r. PADEN I 2,547,966

FOLDING ALTAR Filed Dec. 16, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVE- fiea eii fgo en BY am,

F. T. PADEN FOLDING ALTAR Arifi m, 1951 4 SheetsSheet 2 Filed Dec. 16, 1947 TOR. o erL'c/ff/ ao en April 10, 1951 IN VEN TOR. I flegxgm'ck W We/O F. T. PADEN FOLDING ALTAR April 10, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 16, 1947 BY ife F4174 @Oen i atenteci Apr. 10, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,5479% FOLDING ALTAR Fredriek T. Paden, ct iiiigsvvooa, N. .1;- Application December 16, 1947, Serial No. 79%090 .4C1ai1fis'. (c1. 312 536 (Granted ulidr the act of Maren 3, 1883; as amended April 30, 1928: 370 O. G. 757) tag.

Another object of the invention consists in the firovisi'on of a foldable altar in which certain of in a portable container analogous to atravel'ing thije folda'ble parts maybe received in a rig-id part.

(if the altar for the dual purpose of conserving space and for maintaining the foldable parts in their/folded condition.

A further object of the invention resides in the formation of a foldable altar provided with novel interlocking parts whereby a high degree of rigidity is imparted to the altar when it is set up for use;

A Sui-1 furtherobject of the invention resides sihn's 'suiiiciently small to permit it to be placed in the production of an altar bearing insignia symbolical of the Christian faith but which may be easily and simply converted to one conformirig to the Jewish faith.

Qther objects and advantages of the invention will" be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which: v

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the foldable altar set up for use at a Christian service;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the reverse side of the insignia bearing panel;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3-'-3' of Figure 11;

Figure i is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 4f" -4 of Figure 5; n e a Figure 5' is a rear elevational view ofthe altar;

, Figures 6 to 10 inclusive are enlarged sectional detail vieijv's of the altar; V I v V I I Figure" 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the front and side walls of the body of the altar in partly folded condition;

Figure 12 is an elevational view of the altar in fdlded'cdndition; and

Figure 13 is a similar View taken at a different angle and showing the re-table in cross-section.

More specifically the numeral l indicates generally the portable and fol'dable altar which is com d of a fol'd'able' front and sides, a removable top and; is" open at its bottom and back.

The frontwall of the altar is" composed of two hinged sections 2 and 3 provided with embossing t on their bottom and Side edges, and each havi ng a cut-out porti'oii- 5 extending from the center l ine'of the front walltoward the side edge of each section and cooperating to provide'a central openr ng for the reception of a' removable panel to be later referred to in detail;

The two front wall sections 2 and 3 are provided with l ri'ngek'nuckles 6, above and belowth'e cut-out portion, which are formed on elongated Fir-n e straps i the ends of which are fixed to the interior faces of the sections adjacent the inner dgs thereof. The hinge is formed by means of a} pintle 8 which is formed of one piece and ex n s into th' hin'ge knuckles 6 above and belotv' the opening 5 and spans the space across the opening order to provide a more sturdy construction.- By viewing Figure 12 of the drawings, it will be noted that the hinge straps are of such length as' to provide a space between the sections 2 and 3 wh'en they are folded ba'okwardly upon tlielns'elves for storage or transportation. Hinged to the free edges of the front wall sections'Z and 3, as by means of hinges 10, are side walls" H and I2 which are each provided with a notch l3 adjacent the top of its free edge to aid in looking the top of the" altar in position, as will later appear; Pivotally connected to the interior races of the side walls H and I2 and to the rear rac s of the front wall sections 2 and -3 are foldabl brackets M which serve to releasably hold the side walls I l' and [2 in right angular relationship to the front wall when the altar is set up; for use.

The removable top" of the altar is indicated by the numeral l5 and has fiir'ed-ly mounted thereon adjacent its rear edge' a l e-"table IS, the front wall I! of which is hinged adjacent the top of the retable so as to permit it to be swung inwardly as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 4. Lugs or detents l8 and I9 may be provided for releasably holding the front Wall I! in either its closed or open position. .A primary purpose .of the hinged front wall I! of the re-table is to permit the interier of the r table to be'used as a pocket to receive an edge of the" folded body portion of the altarwhen the" same is knocked down .or collapsed for storagefdrtransportation; as' clearly indicated in Figure 13.

The rear edge of the top I5 is provided with an inturned flange 20 (Figure '7) which is adapted to interlock with the slots or notches [3 formed in the free edges of the side walls H and 12 as clearly indicated in Figure 11. The front wall sections 2 and 3 may be provided at their upper edges with a plurality of outwardly directed nibs 2| for cooperation with a spring detent or latch 22 extending downwardly from the interior face of the top l adjacent its forward edge.

Also extending downwardly from the interior face of the top [5 adjacent its forward edge is a rib 23 extending throughout the width of the top member and adapted to be seated, when in position, in grooves 24 formed in the upper edges of the two sections of the front wall of the altar, thereby serving to rigidly fix these two sections in alignment and supplementing the action of the foldable brackets 14.

Each of the cut-out sections 5 is surrounded on three edges, that is, its upper and lower edges and the edge remote from the pintle 8, by a substantially U-shaped frame member 25 secured to the interior face of the front wall section and the lower edge of each of the frame members is provided with a horizontally extending pocket 26 adapted to receive the lower edge of a panel 21 having an area somewhat greater than the area formed by the two cut-out portions 5. This panel is provided with a cross 28 on one of its faces and the star of David 29 on its opposite face, and the panel is adapted to be placed in the pocket 26 with either the one or the other face directed forwardly of the altar. The panel 21 may be releasably retained within the pocket 26 by means of a rotatable latch 30 or the like pivotally mounted on the upper edge of one of the frame members 25.

When the altar is to be knocked down for shipping or the like the top I5 is first removed by raising its forward end thereby releasing the spring latch 22 from the nibs 2|, and it may then be moved rearwardly to disengage the flanges 20 from the cut-out portions i3 on the rear edges of the side walls I l and I2. Thereafter the foldable braces or brackets 14 are operated to release the side walls of the altar so that they maybe swung inwardly against the inner faces of the front wall sections 2 and 3, and then the front wall sections may be pivoted about their hinges 6 to bring them into parallel relationship with the side walls disposed therebetween as clearly shown in Figure 12. The front wall 11 of the re-table l6 may then be forced to its open position with its free edge in engagement with the latch 19 so as to provide a pocket into which an edge of the folded body portion of the altar may be inserted, and retained in folded position thereby. The interlocked top and folded body portion together with the panel 21, which may be placed against the folded body portion and in alignment with the upper edge of the retable, may then be inserted in a suitable traveling bag or the like for transportation purposes.

In setting up the altar for use it is only necessary to reverse the several steps just described and hence, further description of this operation is thought to be unnecessary except to say that when set up the altar is quite rigid by reason of the action of the braces M, in conjunction with the interlocking of the rib 23 of the top with the grooves 24 in the upper edges of the front wall section, and the interlocking of the flanges 20 in the notches 13 formed in the free edges of the side wall members H and 12;- and that the portable altar is readily convertible for services in the Christian faith or the Jewish faith by merely releasing the turn button 30 and presenting the panel to suit the particular occasion.

While the structural features have been described in considerable detail, it will be quite obvious that various mechanical changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and it is intended that all such modifications be included within the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A foldable and portable altar comprising a front wall formed of two vertically hinged sections, side walls hinged to the free edges of the front wall sections, a removable top, and a retable on said top including a horizontally hinged front panel, whereby the table may be folded and be retained in folded condition by inserting one end thereof into the interior of the retable.

2. A foldable portable altar comprising a front wall formed of two vertically hinged sections, the pivot point of the hinge being spaced rearwardly of the front wall, whereby when the sections are swung rearwardly into parallel relationship a pocket is provided, and side walls pivoted to the free edges of the front wall sections, a removable top, a re-table on the top, said re-table provided with an open front into which an end of the folded altar may be received.

3. A foldable portable altar comprising a front wall formed of two vertically hinged sections, the pivot point of the hinge being spaced rearwardly of the front wall, whereby when the sections are swung rearwardly into parallel relationship a pocket is provided, and side walls pivoted to the free edges of the front wall sections, a removable top, a re-table on the top, said re-table provided with an open front, and an inwardly opening closure for the front, whereby the closure may be automatically moved to open position as an end of the folded altar is pressed thereagainst.

4. A foldable and portable altar comprising a foldable body portion, a removable top, a retable fixed to the top, said re-table provided with an open front, whereby the folded body portion may be retained in folded condition by inserting one end thereof in the open front of the retable.

FREDERICK T. PADEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

